Dr Abhnil PRASAD

Employment experience: 

2019 – Now: Senior Research Fellow (UNSW)

2013 – 2019: Research Fellow (UNSW)

​2013 – 2019: Research Assistant (University of Auckland, New Zealand)

Education: 

2009 – 2012: Doctor of Philosophy in Physics (University of Auckland, New Zealand)

2006 – 2008: Master of Science in Physics (Jawaharlal Nehru University, India)

2003 – 2006: Bachelor of Science in Mathematics and Physics (University of the South Pacific, Fiji)

Research interests: 

• Weather and climate modelling

• Renewable energy systems modelling

• Energy meteorology

• Big data analysis and artificial intelligence

Why is your research important? 

I am an atmospheric modeller at the forefront of efforts to bring atmospheric science knowledge to engineering and model-development problems. My research aims to understand the impact of weather and climate on solar and wind energy generation, and to develop new ways to improve weather and climate information for renewable energy risk management. My research spans a wide spectrum of space and time scales, from urban to global and from minutes to centuries. The focus draws upon the state-of-the-art meteorological tools (including numerical weather prediction, global and regional climate models, satellite and ground observations) to address a range of renewable energy sector issues including solar/wind resource characterisation, solar/wind farm modelling, extreme events and insurance, nowcasting, forecasting, and the impacts of future climate change on the energy sector.

Why do you like research?  

I always like to challenge myself with new problems, and research environments provide the intellectual stimulation that gets me out of bed every morning.

What do you like to do when you are not saving the world?  

I like watching movies, reading books, and playing soccer.